Arizona lawmakers press Interior, OMB to release Colorado River drought funds

PHOENIX — Two Arizona congressmen, one Democrat and one Republican, are calling on the Trump administration to stop holding back billions of dollars meant to fight the historic drought choking the Colorado River.

They warn the money could disappear if it isn’t spent soon.

Reps. Greg Stanton and Andy Biggs, a Democrat and Republican respectively, co-signed the letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and budget chief Russell Vought on April 9, demanding the government release unspent drought relief funds that Congress set aside nearly four years ago.

In 2022, Congress secured $4 billion in funding to support drought mitigation efforts. The congressional approval runs out in July and much of that money has yet to go out the door.

Colorado River money held back as a bargaining chip

The problem, the lawmakers say, is that federal officials are using the cash as leverage.

According to the letter, Acting Reclamation Commissioner Scott Cameron and Reclamation staff communicated to congressional staff that these unspent dollars have, in part, been held back as bargaining chips for the federal government in Colorado River Compact negotiations.

“We cannot afford to delay time-sensitive drought-mitigation projects any longer,” they wrote in the letter.

The Colorado River is the primary water supply for roughly 40 million people across seven Western states and Mexico, according to the Department of the Interior. It feeds farms, fills reservoirs and powers hydroelectric dams. A decades-long drought, made worse by rising temperatures, has pushed the system to the brink.

Heat and mega-drought have intensified across the basin, and Reclamation’s own projections suggest that Lakes Mead and Powell may soon approach critical levels, placing the water and hydropower for millions of Americans at risk.

The lawmakers stressed that the clock is ticking

Among the specific projects the congressmen want funded to go to the Yuma Desalting Plant, while also supporting long-term investments that add water to the basin system.

They asked the Interior Department to spell out what additional authority it needs from Congress to get the money moving.

“The end of FY2026 is rapidly approaching, and these unexpended funds may never reach the water users who will take all-important steps to reduce their use and add water to the Colorado River system,” they wrote.

They ended the letter with a desperate appeal.

“We ask you to immediately release unexpended drought mitigation funds and allow Arizona and the other basin states to take all necessary measures to protect one of the West’s most precious resources,” said Stanton and Biggs, as they closed the letter.

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